


The Lavender Woman

by Madras_Eclipse



Series: Alola Gensokyo [3]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions, Pocket Monsters: Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon | Pokemon Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon Versions, Touhou Project
Genre: F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-26
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:07:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 12,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24575038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Madras_Eclipse/pseuds/Madras_Eclipse
Summary: Patchouli Knowledge was a quiet, shut-in librarian, before Gensokyo got sucked into the Pokemon World. While struggling to adjust, she gets a request: help set right what went wrong in another Pokemon World, in another timeline. It's a quest that will surely test the limits of her abilities, and leave her remembered as a legend and a hero.Assuming, of course, her poor physical condition doesn't get to her first.
Series: Alola Gensokyo [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1715866
Comments: 9
Kudos: 9





	1. From Nobody to Knowledge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The beginnings of a witch, from humble origins to element-swinging greatness.

"...and make sure the kitchen is absolutely spotless when I return."

"Yes father," a young girl bowed.

"Good," her father affirmed. "I hope you understand the importance of my meeting with this man. I do believe his eldest son will make a good fit for you."

"I understand, father."

As the girl's father stepped out the door to his waiting carriage, he turned around and reminded her, "please do not leave the house or do anything unbecoming of a young woman, and do not neglect your studies and chores. I will be back tomorrow evening." And with that, without so much as a proper goodbye, the door shut.

Adeline sighed. Was this really all there was going to be for her life? Obeying men without question and being regulated to housewife duties?

Adeline's family was the richest estate in a town nestled in the foothills of the Pyrenees, about halfway between the Atlantic coast and Toulouse. The youngest of seven children and the only girl of the bunch, her brothers ranged in age from 15-28, the younger ones going to a prestigious boarding school in Toulouse while her oldest brother was a Lieutenant in the army, while Adeline herself lived with her father at his estate and was cared for by the maids. Her mother, herself the youngest of seven children, succumbed to tuberculosis when Adeline was very young, leaving her without a mother or much else in the way of real female role models in her life. Furthermore, her town was rather conservative, and women were expected to marry suitable men and carry out their duty as faithful wives, rather than embark on any real ambitions of their own. Not having her mother around to guide her was tough, and she came to resent her father's apparent neglectful attitude toward her, an afterthought compared to her more successful brothers. In reality, her father did care for her, but just didn't know how to raise a girl, so he usually just left her to the maids, which was better than nothing but not like having a real mother to care for her, or teacher to guide her.

All that time alone did have some benefits, however. From a young age, she was really into books, venturing into her father's vast collection when he wasn't around and delving right into maps of Europe and the world, encyclopedias and references on history, the human body and geography, and, of course, vast and enthralling fantasy worlds woven by authors from all over, from the rebellious tale of Cendrillon to the works of Shakespeare to the epic adventures of Homer. These books provided an escape from her life, and she proved to be a bright bulb, learning how to read and speak at only three years, learning how to write by the time she was four, played the piano proficiently, and could solve complex mathematical theorems - skill which would, unfortunately, surely go wasted in her society which valued men over women.

A pivotal moment in her life came when she was seven, when she discovered one peculiar book near the back of her father's library: Arabian Nights. Delving right into it, she became enchanted by the forbidden tales of magic and myth in the desert sands of the Middle East and North Africa. The more she read it, the more she thought about magic and whether it was real, how she could create impossible things and do whatever she wanted with it. She was aware of the risks, of course: witches were hanged left and right by superstitious townspeople all over, and thought about what would happen should her father catch her making a candlelit pentagram in the cellar. But given how often she was alone and therefore how easily it could be hidden, she felt it was a risk worth taking. Her hungry young mind just couldn't ignore it.

Her chance to act on it came when she was nine, and a fair came to town. Her father, of course, wanted to check it out, and brought all of his children along. This fair had it all: a travelling circus, merchants from all over Europe and beyond hawking their wares ranging from hand-crafted knick-knacks to exotic food and animals, and the kid's favorite carnival attractions. While her brothers all wasted time in the midway and her father took in the pleasures of the circus performances, Adeline found herself wandering through the many sales stalls lining the cobblestone streets. On one side, a stand selling Russian nesting dolls, an American stand full of ranch-raised beef, a Japanese stand lined with paper cranes and tassels. It was as if the whole world had converged on her small town for her to see, and piqued her interest of the world at large.

It was as she wandered through the stalls that one stand caught her eye: draped in a purple cloak and with strange lettering, and manned by a figure in a hood. It gave a decidedly otherworldly air, like the voices of spirits and the fallen angel himself spoke to her soul with the promise of forbidden knowledge of magic, the universe and the occult. Adeline, of course, was drawn to it like a moth to flame; she knew she wouldn't get another chance like this. The hooded figure, it turned out, was a woman, one who was, in fact, around Adeline's age when she started dabbling into witchcraft, but was here posing as a simple fortune-teller. She saw talent in the child before her, like she was destined for great things. So she gave her a stack of grimoires, a crystal ball, and other supplies in a box, free of charge. Adeline was beyond delighted, but was worried about what would happen if her dad saw this; the woman offered to deliver the goods later that night when everyone was asleep.

After receiving the goods, Adeline wasted no time studying them. Magic, as it turned out, was very complicated, and involved a lot of theory, a lot of chemistry, a lot of astronomy, and of course the ability to summon and control demons without falling victim to their tricks, but it was all so fascinating that she was up to the challenge. On clear nights, she would use her father's telescope, sketching out the stars and constellations in the sky and making homemade star charts. She would mix her regular studies with readings on various different subjects, with one subject which caught her fancy being Wu Xing, or the Chinese treatise on the five elements, plus Sun and Moon. At night, she would practice controlling these elements, bringing in soil from the garden in the pot, watering it, then creating a miniature sun between her palms, the rays heating the soil until a plant, manifested from control over wood, sprouted; or perhaps collecting rocks and gravel from the creek and twisting metal until she could purify a very, very small amount of gold flecks, such that by now, when she was thirteen, her gold collection was about the size of a baseball, and worth an extremely large amount of francs for a girl such as her. She was still iffy about summoning demons, but felt confident she was getting close to that point, a copy of the Ars Goetia carefully hidden in her room for when that day came.

But, in the end, no amount of magical study could overcome the hard truth: she was a woman in this society, expected to do chores for the men, grow up, get married to some boy she didn't know, have a family and be a housewife. She wasn't sure she ever wanted to have a family and take care of little brats, unlike most girls her age. She didn't particularly like doing housework or chores. And, unbeknownst to anyone except herself, she didn't have any interest in men. She couldn't quite place it, but seeing her brothers without clothes had no effect on her, whereas she couldn't check up on the housemaids changing clothes without becoming very distracted by their bodies. She would have fantasies about being with other girls in a way that went beyond just being friends. It was like how her brothers would talk about girls, except she was very confident in her own identity as a girl. Maybe it was because the maids were always around her and had no issue being nude or in underwear around her, and how she had never seen very many boys and men other than her brothers and father, that caused her brain and developing body to wire themselves in the way that they had. Or maybe it was just an extension of her resentment of her place in the world and wanting to trace her own path, to not be bound by traditional marriage customs. She didn't know how anyone would react if she mentioned this, though, so she never did, and kept it bottled up because of how taboo such thinking was considered. In any case, she wasn't happy with the life others had set for her, and wanted to find her own way in life, prove she could be credit to the family name without conforming to the mold.

These thoughts played out in her head as she walked past two maids, and overheard them talking about something. Curious, she listened in to what they had to say:

"They say the Blood Moon's gonna be out tomorrow night."

"The Blood Moon?"

"Yeah. They say that when the Blood Moon comes out, that's when the Scarlet Devil runs rampant and feeds on people's blood."

"Oh please, you seriously still believe in that old tale?"

"What, you're saying you don't?"

"Everyone know's that Count Scarlet's been dead as a doornail for centuries, and everyone know's he was just a crazed lunatic. I mean, it's not like vampires actually exist or anything!"

"Well, I heard from this one guy that he had an heir. I mean, how can there be people around here saying a vampire bit them if the Scarlet Devil is dead?"

"So you're saying the Scarlet Devil is that descendant?

"Why not?"

"I mean, there's no way to know for sure. Do vampires even run in families?"

"Well, I'm gonna set up wards tonight just in case. Can't be too careful."

"You do what you want, but I still don't believe in that nonsense."

The Scarlet Devil. Adeline was familiar with this story; everyone in the town was. The Scarlets were a family dating back a very long way in the town's past, based in an old mansion built sometime in the 11th Century. They once ruled the lands surrounding the town, until some say strange things began happening there. One past ruler of the mansion had dealings with Vlad Tepes, and a few say that the family had connections with him as well. The last Count of the mansion was known as a madman who was alleged to be a vampire and a Devil worshiper, so the townspeople had him killed. Since then, the mansion fell into rumor, with even its location having been lost to time. There was, however, one occurrence unique to the town and its surroundings: every year, around this time, there was one night where the moon would take on a red hue. Furthermore, the next morning there were always some people, either in town or surrounding it, who would find bite marks on their necks. They would claim this was the work of a vampire, with rumors swirling about it possibly being a child of the Count who was responsible for them, but people tended to dismiss it; the Blood Moon was explained to be due to a mist that would blow off the mountains around this time of year, although exactly why it appeared was not well understood.

Adeline knew better. She dabbled in the occult, so of course she would be familiar with vampires and other creatures of the night. How could anyone possibly dismiss the possibility of a vampire given all these signs? The red mist was most likely created by this vampire as a "calling card" of sorts. And she realized the date that this happened was always the same, so surely it wasn't a coincidence...

...aha. As she thought more about it, she got the perfect idea. If she could somehow slay this vampire, then maybe she would finally earn the respect she craved so much. She knew all about a vampires abilities and weaknesses: in addition to drinking blood, they possessed considerable physical strength, the ability to transform, to fly, to control the minds of those they looked in the eyes. To defeat them, exposing them to daylight, driving a wooden stake through the heart, burning them to cinders or slashing them with silver. They also could not enter a house unless somehow invited. Perhaps she could lay a trap, so she could slay the Scarlet Devil right in front of her father's eyes.

She did, of course, do her chores first, as her father would have been suspicious otherwise. As she cleaned the kitchen, she found an old, disused broom whose handle was made of pure ash wood, the perfect material for a stake. She also swiped a silver knife from the drawer. Down in the cellar, she found a carving knife as well as some ink and some crate lids - everything she needed.

That night, she went to work, sawing the end off the broom and sharpening a point to make a nice little vampire-slaying stake. Next, she assembled some sticks to make a cross, a Star of David, and other holy symbols. Finally, she carved a message onto two pieces of wood fished from the crate lids: "Welcome to our home, one and all." The first would be hung over the main entrance, and the second would be hidden over the outside of the window in her father's room. Her plan in place, all that was left was to wait for tomorrow night.

The next day went by more or less like most of Adeline's days, a servant drilling her on math, reading and science. Despite being only thirteen, Adeline was already fluent in many languages such as Spanish, English, German and other European tongues, as well as more exotic languages like Chinese, Japanese, Hindi, Persian and Arabic. She had mastered most of the core concepts of biology (especially botany), chemistry, geology and geography, and was all the way up to advanced Calculus. And yet her father told her not to waste her talents as "the world just doesn't accept female intellectuals." Adeline resolved to prove him wrong someday, but wasn't sure how she would do so just yet.

Her father returned home just as the sun was starting to set and dinner was laid out on the table. He arrived in the dining room, a small table set up for him and his little girl, the boys all elsewhere on their own adventures. Adeline was laying out plates and silverware.

"I'm home," he said.

"Welcome home, father," Adeline smiled.

"Did you clean up as I asked?"

"Yes, miss Chantelle watched me do it."

"And your studies?"

"I left my work out on the desk," Adeline said pointing to the oak desk in question.

Her father shuffled through the sheets filled with complex theorems and chemical formulas. "Impressive. This is far beyond anything I learned in school and you're still young, to boot."

"I appreciate it."

Adeline's father looked around, and asked her, "it seems you're at the limits of what the local tutors can teach you. And yet you are too young yet to become a housewife... how would you like to go to University?"

Adeline jumped up in surprise. "U-university?"

"You have a passion for learning about the world, and I want to foster that. You would have to go to Paris though... there are no girl's schools close to here."

Adeline took a moment to calm herself down from her father, of all people, offering to send her off to University. "I... I would love it, but... you said..."

"I know... I know what I said," her father told her, a little downcast. "I see your mother's talents in you, and I would love for you to do great things. But I've seen this country, seen the way women who aren't married are treated. I wish I could change that, but I can't. That's why I'm trying so hard to get you a man I hope you will love, and even then any accomplishments you achieve will likely be credited to him."

Adeline looked down, and realized in her heart, as neglectful as she thought her father was at times, he was right. This society was rather cruel to women, and there just seemed to be no way out. If only there was a way she could break free of that mold.

Her father held her shoulder. "Promise to me that you will use your talents to become a legend that generations will remember."

Adeline was shocked. Words of encouragement, from her father? He had never done such a thing before in her life. But in this moment, he seemed to be speaking from the heart. Perhaps this was the side her father always wanted to show but couldn't out of fear. It shed a new light on his treatment of her, not as a neglectful father of an only daughter, but a caring dad who was hopeful and fearful of her future.

Adeline squeezed his hand. "I will... dad."

"That's my Adeline," her father said, hugging her.

* * *

After dinner, as her father prepared for bed, Adeline thought back to his encouraging words earlier. She now felt bad about doing what it was she was about to do, which was to lure a vampire into his room to kill it and prove her worth. Too late to back out, though. She had to move forward with her plan. Everything was set up, and this was her only chance for a year to do it.

Adeline was put to bed, but faked sleep until she was sure her father was asleep and the servants and maids were away in their quarters. Around ten, she got up, gathered the knife, stake and holy symbols from her dresser, then quietly tiptoed up to her father's room. Creaking the door open, her father was sound asleep. Quietly, she closed the door, snuck over into his closet, and hid in it. She hid for what seemed like an eternity, her head lazily tilting as the telltale glow of the Blood Moon bled under the closet door crack.

Adeline was shaken back to lucidity when she heard the sound of the window opening, followed by what sounded like a bat flapping in, then the sound of high-heeled footsteps setting down onto the wood floor. Adeline's heart pounded. Was this the vampire?

Adeline got her weapons together and planted her ear on the closet door, listening closely to the intruder. Her father was presumably still asleep, otherwise he would be reacting to... _whatever_ was out there.

Then, a child-like but unfittingly sultry voice spoke, "my my, what a foolish human, not setting up his wards and inviting people into his place on the night of the Blood Moon. As though he were asking for me to come to him... I see, no wife. Very well, I shall keep you company _for as long as you like..."_

Suddenly, Adeline burst out of the closet, dashed to the figure and drew the knife up to... the neck of a girl slightly younger than herself and a little shorter, to boot. Not... quite what she was expecting, but this intruder was a vampire all the same.

"Die monster, you don't belong in this world!" Adeline threatened. Somehow, her father was deep in sleep even through this exchange.

The vampire stepped back in a bit of shock. "Oh dear, oh my, it seems as though a trap was laid. I thought this was too easy, and here I am about to pay for my foolishness. Go on, finish me off, human, and do your family proud."

 _This is my chance,_ Adeline thought. She was actually about to slay a vampire! So she took her stake, and aimed right at the vampire's heart. But just before she could strike...

"You are a witch, are you not?"

Adeline stopped. "Hm?"

"A witch," the vampire asked again. "One who studies magic."

Adeline was confused about what the vampire was asking. "What do you mean... AH! Have you been..."

"Watching you?" the vampire asked. "Not necessarily. But I can still tell that you are a witch, and one with great potential, at that."

Adeline lowered her weapons a little, but still kept her guard up. This could be a trap, she realized. "How... can you tell?"

The vampire raised a long, red fingernail, from which a golden line drew. This line split into seven, and one of them split into seven more, which was glowing white. "I can see fates, past and future. It seems you are the seventh child of a seventh child, that being your mother. For a boy, this means he is destined to be a vampire; for a girl, she is destined to be a witch, one who dabbles in arcane affairs and who is wise beyond her years..." She drew the fingernail up under Adeline's neck, causing her breathing to tense up. "So... I assume you were responsible for setting this up?"

Adeline was scared, but tried not to show fear. "Y-yes. I did. I wanted to bring some honor to my family. To prove myself."

The vampire drew her finger back."Hmhm. Fufu. I see. Kill me not for money, but for fame. For honor, to prove yourself in this misogynistic society... tell me, why use your father as bait? What do you have against him?"

Ah... jeez, Adeline really ought to just kill this vampire now, she thought. So she lunged with the knife, only for the vampire to casually sidestep her. Adeline turned around, the vampire still smiling.

"How improper to greet a guest in such a barbaric manner," she slyly commented. "But... now that I think about it, I myself was improper for never introducing myself." She bowed down and did a curtsy. "I am Remilia Scarlet, the Scarlet Devil, daughter of Count Colorado de Scarlet and Lousia Fêrre. I am the proprietor of the Scarlet Devil Mansion." She looked out the window. "And today is my birthday, a day on which I cast a red mist to turn the moon a brilliant blood color and sample the blood of the folk of this town over which my family once ruled over, as opposed to the poor Spanish peasants in the mountains who will never tell anyone anything."

Adeline now realized this vampire was far more powerful than her appearance let on. She wondered now if she had signed her own death warrant, and if this little girl vampire would now crush her as easily as a twig.

"Aha, I see," Remilia wryly smiled. "I can sense the fear in your eyes, being in the presence of someone as powerful as myself, one who wields the powers of the night." She closed her eyes, and crossed her arms. "And I can sense the frustration in your heart, at the misogyny of this society and how there is no path for greatness allotted to women, however hard you try. How you can't trust the men who run the world, leaving you talent unused and ignored."

She opened her eyes. "But, I am not a cold-hearted mass-murderer, and I do extend mercy quite often. Therefore, I shall grant you a deal, one which you cannot possibly resist."

Adeline knew this was some kind of trap; she was the Scarlet _Devil,_ after all, and devils were known for their famously manipulative and lie-laden tongue. But Remilia did make a good point: Adeline had herself seen the beggar girls on the street who didn't have husbands, and despite her father's wishes she knew there probably wasn't much change she could enact on her own. Plus, she had grown fond of witchcraft and didn't want to give it up, but she knew she probably could not hide it forever, and the consequences of being found out were severe, to say the least. So she decided to hear Remilia out, if only to try and find an opening.

"What's your offer?" Adeline asked.

Remilia smirked. "Ah. So you ARE interested. Very well." She looked out the window to the Blood Moon. "In my mansion is a vast library, Voile. It is filled to the brim with a collection of hundreds of thousands of books and artifacts, collected from all corners of the world over several centuries. It is a haven for bookworms and aspiring witches such as yourself, a place where you could conduct studies and unravel the mysteries of life and the universe. But, it has been without a librarian for quite some time, and I fear the place will fall into disuse without one."

She turned back around to face Adeline. "I am asking that you become my librarian. Should you accept, I shall show you the path to becoming a true magician, and free you from this oppressive world where men crush women underneath their heels. You may, of course, decline; if you do, I shall depart from here without harming anyone, and you are free to live your life as you choose. But I do advise this is a rare opportunity which one as gifted as yourself would be a fool to refuse."

Damn it, Adeline thought. This vampire was very good at selling people on ideas. This devil, like the serpent who hung low from the branch of the Tree of Knowledge offering her the forbidden fruit, tempting her with this arcane knowledge and yet also offering an escape from a world in which her talents would go unappreciated, and where men deemed her useless if she did not marry and provide for a family, which she knew was impossible since she wasn't attracted to men and therefore could not hold down a relationship with one. If she entered into this vampire's servitude, she would all but certainly have to disappear from human society and cause her father great anxiety. And there was no guarantee that this wasn't simply a ruse by the vampire to isolate and kill her instead.

So she drew her cross and held it up. "Your deal sounds good, but there is no way I can trust you. I want you to show me this library yourself. Know that I can surely expel you with this cross if you try your hand on me." The cross's holy effect could be seen on Remilia, who visibly stepped back away from the cross.

"Hmhmhm... if you insist," she said. "But I do not lie about this opportunity. Perhaps seeing it will impact your decision more than words will." She looked out the window again. "Have you mastered transfiguration?"

"Yes, why?"

Remilia grinned. "Good. Then there will be no impediment to me leading you there."

Adeline took out a piece of paper and wrote a short letter to her father, leaving it on his mantle. Then, once she was ready, she cast a spell in the air and spun around, letting it land on her, until she became an owl. Remilia then shifted into a bat, and led Adeline out the window and into the moonlit night.

* * *

Gliding on currents, the two flew deep into the rocky valleys of the Pyrenees, past rolling farm fields, emerald fir forests and cascading waterfalls. The haunting cries of night animals filled the air, the imagery of the Blood Moon combining with it to make for a scene which would gravely unnerve any mortal.

An hour's flight from the town, the two rounded a mountain concealing a lake. There, on the lake's shore, stood a large building, its most visible landmark a tall clock tower, and an outer wall separating it from the world outside. As Remilia started a dive down to the manor, Adeline knew that this was their destination.

The two landed, and shifted back into their human forms, on a pathway leading up to the mansion's main gate. From the ground, Adeline took in a perspective which she couldn't from the air: the mansion stood, tall and imposing against the mountainside behind it, and she could tell arcane energies flowed in, through and around it, befitting the home of a vampire.

"Welcome to my humble home," Remilia said.

Adeline looked up. "I wouldn't call something like this humble..."

"Oh, but it is. Its majesty is but nothing compared to the empire my family once commanded from within it." The vampire led the girl up to the gate, where Adeline caught a glimpse of someone: a woman, in strange, green foreign clothes and with red hair, seemingly sleeping while in a lotus position against the outer wall right next to the iron bars.

"Who is she?" Adeline asked quietly.

"That is my loyal and dependable gate guard," Remilia said.

Adeline shook her head. Seemed like a lousy gate guard if she was asleep like that. So she went up to the gate, noticing it to be open. But before she could push it open, a leg clothed in puffy white pants slammed against the gate in front of her, causing her to jump back in shock.

"How foolish of you to assume I am not observant of my surroundings at all times," the woman said in a Chinese accent. "I was merely meditating, aligning my mind with the flow of the world's energy and focusing my mental and physical strength."

This woman was fierce, powerful and disciplined, Adeline realized. She was unlike anyone she had ever seen before. For one, at almost two full meters, she was taller and more muscular than she thought a woman could ever be, and was even bigger than many men in the village. She had a slim, perfectly proportioned physique, long, meaty legs under those pants and dress, large breasts, a beautiful face and long hair which blew gently in the breeze, and yet her arms and fists bore scars as proof of her previous scuffles. Adeline's young heart started to quicken, and a feeling overcame her face and body which she did not recognize. Was she scared, nervous? Perhaps, since this woman could probably shatter solid steel, but she also did not seem malevolent, or appeared to want to hurt her in any way.

If that was the case, Adeline thought, then... could it be some other emotion? Perhaps, maybe, it was...

"Let's not dilly-dally," Remilia said, cutting Adeline's thoughts. "We are here for business, after all."

"Oh, right," Adeline replied, snapping back into the present.

Remilia waved her hand. "Meiling, I am showing this young girl the library, as she has the talent to manage it."

Meiling scratched her head. "Eh? But she appears to only be a child..."

"She shows promise as a magician. I am sure she will grow into the role well."

Meiling nodded. "I understand." She opened the gate for them to let them through. Adeline's eyes stayed on Meiling for as long as possible before they reached the heavy oak doors of the mansion at the other side of the path through the carefully maintained gardens, still enchanted by the foreign beauty at the gate.

Predictably, the inside of the mansion was dark. The moment they stepped in, Remilia clapped her hands, after which lights lit on the grand chandelier above, then along the walls and down the hallways.

Adeline came from a rich house, but _this_ place easily put even that to shame: all around her, a majestic foyer with a grand staircase, expensive artwork, impeccable hardwood floor, velvet rugs and furniture and grand, gold-framed windows, speaking volumes about the amount of wealth which this vampire commanded.

"Impressive, is it not?" Remilia said holding her hands out. "This is the estate which ruled over this region for centuries, and these walls reflect all of the achievements which came in that time." She turned around. "Of course, I do not maintain all of this without help." She snapped her fingers, and called out, "Elly, come."

Within moments, six small girls came down the hallway on the right side of the top of the stairs, filing down the steps and forming a V-shape in front of the two. It took no time for Adeline to notice that these maids had transparent, insect-like wings; they were fairies, perhaps fitting for a vampire to have as servants. Behind them, a middle-aged woman in a maid outfit came down, hands together, and walked to the front of the formation of fairy maids.

"You are home early, m'lady," Elly bowed.

"Let's just say I found a very worthwhile birthday present," Remilia said, holding her hands out to Adeline. "This young lady has the potential of a witch, fit to staff the library."

Elly eyed Adeline, who was still clad in purple pajamas due to coming straight here from her father's bedroom. Elly hardly believed that this girl could be a powerful witch, until she noticed the grimoire held snugly under her arm, one which according to the runes on the cover was written in High Agarthan; that such a book would even be in her possession, much less that she ability to read and use it, was enough to convince Elly that her mistress was not bluffing.

"I see," Elly said. "You must have quite the natural talent to catch the mistress's discerning eye."

"Er, yeah," Adeline said awkwardly.

Elly led the two up the stairs, and pointed down the hallway to the door at the end. "These doors lead down to the basement. That is where the library is. My mistress will guide you there." After that, she turned around and returned to her work.

"Elly may only be human, but I have yet to find a more skilled maid than her," Remilia smiled. "Now come. Voile is not a place which mere words can describe."

Remilia opened up the heavy doors, which creaked in protest from disuse. Past the doors, spiral velveted steps led down a few flights, before landing in front of a very large, ornate door inscribed with Latin letters, which Adeline read and interpreted as "Knowledge is Power."

"This is the library," Remilia said. "The door to it, that is."

Adeline's eyes looked around the room. To her right was the door to the cellar, which included the mansion's vast and expensive supply of vintage wines, and the trapdoor from which it could be accessed. To her left, though, was a door with a cage fitting and an unnaturally hefty silver lock, emblazoned with a crucifix and surrounded by murals of the archangels Micheal, Gabriel, Raphael and Uriel. Adeline was confused as to what such imagery would be doing in the house of a vampire, as it should be extremely hazardous to her.

Pointing it out, Adeline asked, "what is behind that door?"

Remilia turned her head around. "Oh? That is the dungeon. It hasn't held anyone in centuries, but it does contain a powerful force which would surely bring death and destruction if it ever got loose. Elly is the only one in this mansion who can keep it sated."

Adeline gulped, especially given that the library was right next to it. What sort of horror was in there that a vampire, a Satan-serving figure of the night, felt the need to imprison it behind Christian imagery?

"Worry not about it, though," Remilia dismissed. "It hasn't tried to escape in the hundreds of years it has been in there. And the library is well-guarded from any outside threats, so you need not worry even if it did. You have my word."

Adeline was starting to have second thoughts about this job, and not because of the vampire before her, but the apparently destructive horror sealed in a can within the mansion's dungeon. But when Remilia cast open the doors to the library and led her down the stairs, those fears melted away, and Adeline could hardly believe her eyes: hundreds of high rows of books as far as the eye could see, surrounding a large, central study with a raised platform perfect for performing ceremonies, a powerful telescope for stargazing, and an attached, luxurious bedroom for the one who kept the place - her, should she accept the deal. And things only got better when she looked at the books on some of the shelves, containing everything from necronomicons to atlases to encyclopedias and archived scriptures dating back thousands of years. For a young intellectual like her, it was a dream come true, so many books and scrolls in one place that she could spend the rest of her life reading them and never finish them all.

"Enchanted, are you not?" Remilia asked.

"It's..." Adeline's jaw was agape. "I never thought I'd see so many books in one place..."

"My family's collection, and my own, put together over centuries. On these shelves, books which summon demons just by reading them. Books which will suck you into other worlds. Books that kill on touch. Artifacts and scrolls which contain the world's secrets, and books containing the means by which to unlock them. All yours, should you become my librarian and pursue magic. Become a true witch, one who is unaging and able to serve my will."

"A true witch?" Adeline asked.

Remilia giggled. "Oh, this is my favorite part." Waving a hand, she summoned a grimoire, floating down from a shelf and into her hand. "Of course, I am well-practiced in magic myself. My specialty is Wu Xing, the study of five elements plus the Sun and Moon. It is the basis for understanding magic in this world, the underpinnings of the elements whose energy flows through all living things and all landscapes."

Adeline's eyes lit up. "I'm well-versed in Wu Xing."

"Of course you are," Remilia nodded. "A true magician would study that early in their career. And it should make this next process easier." She opened the grimoire, and chanted a spell in Chinese. Seven magic circles formed on the ritual stage, each a different color, before large crystals began to emerge from them one-by-one. A green crystal with the character for Wood, shedding leaves. A red crystal with the character for Fire, wreathed in flames. A blue crystal with the character for Water, crystal-clear drops running across its surface. A yellow crystal with the character for Earth, orbited by sand and stone. A gray crystal with the character for Metal, light glinting off of its metallic sheen. A dark purple crystal with the character for the Moon, casting the illusion of a starlit night. And a final crystal, which shone brilliantly and was too bright to look at, with dark lines marking out the character for the Sun. With the elements in place, a final circle lit up in the center, etched with a heptagram whose points aligned with the crystals now floating in place above the stage.

Remilia's eyes glinted and her mouth smirked as Adeline was entranced by the mystical sight before her.

"As you can see," she said, "I can conjure the seven elements, a skill which none but the most skilled and powerful magic users can muster. If you are as well-versed in Wu Xing as you claim, as skilled and dedicated in arcane studies as your heart tells, then the path to becoming a true magician is a simple one."

Adeline tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

Remilia pointed at the circle between the crystals. "Normally, becoming a true magician requires decades of dedicated study and practice. Most humans who try it without the skill or focus needed die before achieving that goal. But you..." She smiled again. "You are special. For you are the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter, one for whom the barrier between a normal human and a true magician is quite flimsy. Absorbing a sufficient amount of magical energy should be enough to undo the lock and elevate you to the level of legendary witches and wizards who came before you."

Adeline understood that this was her last chance to back out, before committing herself to the life of the occult and turning away from the teachings of God, and throwing away her chance to go to Heaven, so she had been told. But an escape from the society which offered her and her talents no future was also at hand, and no better opportunity would ever come up in her life. It was that subconscious desire for freedom and the pursuit of knowledge which prompted her feet to draw her into the circle, which brightened with a purple glow as she entered.

Remilia stepped back as she watched the process unfold. Looking up, Adeline gave herself to the mystical forces surrounding her, their power flowing from the crystals into her body. Arms out, she levitated off the ground, the energies imbuing themselves into her mind, heart and soul. In her head, visions of scriptures, of nature, of the universe and the spirit world played out, calling for her to cast aside her mortal bindings and embrace the life of one seeking to unpick the universal source code and bend it to their will.

This power, which a young teenage girl's body could not adequately contain, caused her to change; her short brown hair began to lengthen considerably, from the roots down to the ends a pure, solid lavender color overtook, and red and blue ribbons tied themselves on at certain spots. Her body grew and aged up, her face and body molded into that of a woman in her thirties and her chest protruding out. Her pajamas rewove into magician's robes, and a mob cap formed atop her head, the finishing touch a crescent moon symbol.

And with that, the process was complete.

Adeline opened her eyes, which had turned deep purple from their prior hazel. She looked at her hands, then down at her body. Finally, she looked at her reflection in the Metal crystal, and saw the mature, graceful magician she had become.

Remilia clapped. "It looks as though the ritual turned out well."

Adeline was amazed. Despite being a child, she now resembled an older woman. "I... I'm older," she said, for the first time in her more mature voice.

"A magician's appearance is based on their mental age," Remilia stated. "As you are wise and mature beyond your years, it is natural for you to appear as an older woman."

Adeline thought about it. "Hmm... I see." She looked at Remilia. "Then why do you appear as a child?"

Remilia tensed up, for the first time since Adeline met her. "Er... vampires have a long aging process."

"Uh-hum," Adeline wryly smiled, seeing that Remilia, with her mission now complete, had let her guard down around her. "Well, a shame that my new mistress is not a seductive woman who charms the hearts of men before ripping their jugulars out, whose svelte and curvy figure can kill Johns in a snap," she said with a sultry accent.

Remilia froze. Oh lord, she thought. This witch she just hired wasn't one of _those,_ was she? Thoughts ran through her head, of her curled up in a ball while vixens pored over her, their stench filling the room as they eyed her lustfully.

Snapping back to reality, Remilia cleared her throat, and resumed her graceful manner of speech. "Anyway, my newly minted witch, we shall have to appoint a new name for you."

Adeline tilted her head once more. "A new name?"

Remilia smiled. "Your human name does not convey the power and grace which you now command." She thought for a moment, looking over Adeline's predominantly purple-and-white figure. "Mmmmh... the color of Patchouli, and the grand bearer of Knowledge..."

She clapped her hands. "I've got it now," she grinned. "How does the name 'Patchouli Knowledge' suit your fancy?"

Adeline understood that her life as a normal human was now forfeit; to keep her name would be a constant reminder of her ties to that world. Patchouli had always been her favorite flower, the fragrant scent unmistakable in her family's manor's garden, and a name like Knowledge let herself and everyone know that she, more than anyone, sought the truth of the world and would uncover its greatest mysteries.

So she nodded. "I think it's a fine name."

"Splendid," Remilia said. "Then from now on, your name will henceforth and forever more be 'Patchouli Knowledge.'"

Remilia motioned Patchouli off of the stage and dismissed the crystals with a flick of the wrist. She then turned to the witch, and swept her arms out to the vast shelves beyond them.

"Now then, dear Patchouli, this library is yours to maintain and study from."

Patchouli looked up again at the dizzying sight of endless shelves of books going off into the dark abyss. "But these shelves haven't been maintained and organized in a long time. Finding what I want could take ages."

Remilia smirked again. "If that is a concern, then perhaps having a familiar to organize books for you would be of great benefit. You are a true magician now, I'm sure summoning a library devil would be of little challenge to you."

Summoning. A type of magic Patchouli had yet to learn, as thoughts of Goetic demons, from the fearsome and violent Andras to the slippery tongue of Flauros, born from a botched summoning with even one tiny thing gone wrong, flashed through her head. She decided to focus, and deep down found something she hadn't felt before: instant expertise in all basic forms of magic and spells.

As if on instinct, she held out her hand, and stared at the ritual stage with icy intimidation. No candles, no blood, no sacrifices, just pure, red-orange magic lines drawing a pentagram on the floor as her focus intensified, thinking about the sort of being she would want as her familiar. Normally, it would take a level of skill hundreds of years past her age to pull this sort of thing off, but here she was doing exactly that.

Moments after the circle formed, a body began to emerge, that of a red-haired girl with tiny bat wings on her head and a larger set on her back, with a spade-tipped tail curled behind her as well. Her eyes were closed, and once fully emerged she collapsed to the ground and the circle dissipated. She had done it. Patchouli had summoned her first familiar from Hell.

The demon girl came to, and looked up at her new master in confusion. She was nude, and shivering from having been removed from Hell's flames. As much as she wanted to eye the girl's body, Patchouli knew it was right to give her some clothes. So with another wave of the hand, black and white weaves encased the demon girl's body, forming a dress shirt, vest, tie and skirt, pantyhose and black high-heels.

"Welcome to my library, my little devil," Patchouli said. "You are now bound to my service. My will is for you to help keep this library organized and clean."

The demon girl, now up on her feet, was confused. "Koa?"

"My name is Patchouli Knowledge," she said.

The girl's wings flapped excitedly and she smiled, "Patchouli-sama!"

Remilia's shoulders slumped. "Seems this library devil only speaks Japanese," she sighed.

"Not to worry," Patchouli said confidently. "I already know it as though I spoke it from birth. This 'Koakuma' will understand my will in no time at all." She looked around at the shelves again. "And after that, my pursuit of magic can truly begin."

Remilia smiled. "And a great librarian and magician you shall be."

* * *

The Scarlet Devil, ultimately, claimed no victims that night. And because of that, as the dawn's light touched the outer walls, the mansion, and its inhabitants, whose existence was now thoroughly disbelieved by the townsfolk wary of tales about monsters and whose beliefs were seemingly vindicated by the absence of the Scarlet Devil, faded away until no trace of it remained. In the town, at the richest estate, all traces of a girl named Adeline having ever lived there, including the letter written by her, similarly faded, her name and existence struck from history, as Adeline ceased to exist, and Patchouli Knowledge took over, before being taken to the land where all things forgotten ended up.

Despite her disappearance from the public's cognition, her father's words to her, to strive to become a legend remembered by generations, would not be voided. But her chance to act on them would not come until more than one-hundred and twenty years later, in a land and a realm far, far from the sleepy French town from which she hailed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a side-story that follows Patchouli after Gensokyo is cast into Alola, elaborating on an incident hinted at in Chapter 49 and the Epilogue.
> 
> This is also my first time fully exploring an LGBTQ character. I hope I don't mess it up.
> 
> I'm still drafting ideas for Cognitive Psience in Eastern Utopia, which I hope to have chapters for going up by August. These side stories will mostly serve as creative breaks from that to fill gaps, which will hopefully avert a repeat of the gap back between February and November of 2018.
> 
> I'm also facing a lot of upheaval in my life right now, finding new work since my current job ends in September and trying to get life in this COVID-dominated world more fully figured out. That might affect my writing schedule, so just a heads up.


	2. Troll Trouble

**_*Gasp*_ **

Patchouli awoke.

Above her was the library’s ceiling, whose magical lights cast down upon the dim, dusty shelves and floor. She was flat on her back, and she could sense her arms and legs spread out.

She remembered last night clearly: she was outside, assisting in the fight against Ultra Reimu and the Pokemon she summoned, blasting powerful elemental magic to hit the weaknesses of many of them. However, her fragile body, weak from years of relentless study and inactivity, of breathing in dusty air and not going outside, of not getting sun, was struck down when something landed a lucky Stone Edge on her, knocking her down to the ground. She watched the sages get decimated by the Weather Titans, then the Great Dragon coming down to smite them, before itself getting shot down by Necrozma, a creature of black prisms who called Yukari its mom, for… some reason.

But it was what happened after that shook her to the core: Meiling revealing her dragon form and fighting Necrozma over an apparent past grudge. Ever since she met the gate guard, Patchouli had been captivated by her form and personality, her technique and poise, and how she wanted to do  _ this and that with her _ but feared her love would go unrequited. After all, she was just a librarian studying magic, and whose lifestyle was very sedentary. How could she possibly keep up with an attractive, athletic and statuesque woman such as Meiling? Especially since her lifestyle left no time for exercise and healthy eating, as a magician required neither to live; unfortunately, she had inherited her mother’s asthma, which meant that she could hardly go from one side of the mansion to the other without seizing up and entering a violent coughing fit. Just that trip to the Human Village, her first trip past the mansion grounds ever since Tenshi’s incident, took a lot out of her. Thank goodness Meiling was willing to help her back downstairs… her smooth, strong hands holding hers, her firm body rubbing up against her… it was enough to leave Patchouli a blushing mess for the rest of the night. Now, though, no one knew where Meiling was, since Necrozma opened up a gigantic Ultra Wormhole which sucked everything in Gensokyo within. Patchouli had resigned herself to her death, quietly resting and trying to heal her injuries as the electrical bolts danced across the ground and the violent wind tore statues from their foundations.

That was the last she remembered. Now, here she was, inside the library. She didn’t know how she got here, but here she was regardless.

She regained her strength after a few minutes, and managed to push herself up. She looked around. All around her, books were scattered messily and piled one on top of another. Thankfully, none had landed on top of Patchy herself, lest she be buried under books with no help.

Her first instinct was to get this mess cleaned up. And for that job, she could call upon her loyal library devils. So, she clapped her hands, and called out, “Koakuma! Makoto! Akira!”

It took a few moments, but eventually three heads popped up from under the books: Koakuma in the middle, Makoko on the left, and Akira on the right.

“Yes, Patchouli-sama?” Akira asked politely.

_ Thank goodness they’re alright, _ Patchy thought. Then again, devils were made of far tougher stuff than herself; she once saw Koakuma block a sword swing from Alice’s Goliath Doll with her bare hands. A few books burying them was nothing in comparison.

“Would you mind getting all of these books reshelved for me? I need to go upstairs and make sure everyone is alright.”

“Yes, Patchouli-sama,” the three said in unison. Each got to work, stacking the books neatly so they could be properly reshelved. It wasn’t just that one section of the library; the whole place was a mess, no surprise given the mean earthquake generated by the Great Dragon being struck down, as well as the Ultra Wormhole whipping everything around. Fortunately, critical structures in the library such as the support beams, the bookshelves, the telescope, the armillary sphere, and the planetarium were earthquake-proof (which came in handy during the Tohoku Earthquake, which was strong enough to breach the Hakurei Border as an 8.5, and during Tenshi’s incident), and fragile glass artifacts were kept secure in reinforced cases and lockers when not in use. Cleaning up the book mess was all the devils had to worry about, and even then the entire library had a charm on the books that made them durable enough to take a grenade without a scratch.

Carefully, Patchouli made her way up the spiral staircase up to the doors, and after undoing the locks, the doors creaked open, and she stepped outside.

Just outside the library, she looked around quickly to check for damage. Fortunately, the door to Flandre’s chamber and the locks on it were intact, so there was no fear of her getting loose. She felt good to head up to the rest of the mansion above to check up on everyone there.

Predictably, the main foyer was a complete mess, with fallen and shattered busts littering the floor, broken glass and porcelain dishes. Surely, Sakuya was going to be busy for a while cleaning up this mess; she hadn’t seen it this messy since after the Scarlet Mist incident.

She looked out the window facing east. The sky was still a dark hue, the lights of the sun peeking up over the roof…

She looked at her pocket watch. It was 5:30 A.M. Sunrise should have been an hour ago. Had she been knocked out a good while and it was actually August?

...that’s not it, she realized. The damage was far too fresh to have occurred more than a few hours ago. This was confirmed when she checked her clock’s log, which kept track of every time she referred to it. She last opened it at 5:30 P.M., July 3rd 2017. It showed that it had been… five hours since she last opened it.

Something was wrong. Something anomalous was going on, no doubt due to Necrozma. Now she realized that, if anything, it should be the middle of the night, not right before sunrise. The mansion must have to have been physically moved to another location, further south and in a different time zone, since her watch was smart enough to detect time zone changes. The only way to make sure was to step outside, study the sky and try to establish her present coordinates. Well, that wasn’t the  _ only _ way, she thought, but it was quicker then heading back down to the library and using the telescope.

Plus, it would give her an excuse to check up on Meiling, on the chance she was out there.

So she went down to the doors and stepped outside. Almost immediately, the tropical oceanic breeze hit her, and it made her gag as the unfamiliar scent of saltwater and low tide threatened to make her hurl. Quickly, she cast a spell to cleanse the air around her person so that she could breathe. Once that was done, the second thing she noticed was the warm, humid air. Even in summer, mornings in Gensokyo were generally cold, another clue that something was amiss… especially since she had just smelled seawater.

She flew up atop one of the outer walls, and that’s where she caught sight of the expansive ocean bay which had replaced the Misty Lake. Never before in her long life had she seen the sea. Somehow, Patchy found herself momentarily captivated by the gentle rolling waves hitting the sandy beach just beyond the mansion, and the sight of the orange sun casting rays across the vast, seemingly endless water.

She used the sun’s position on the horizon to quickly figure out which direction she was facing, and what time it was. She didn’t have exact tools on hand, but she figured the mansion was now at roughly 21 degrees north latitude, 157 west longitude. Based on her memory of the world’s geography, that would mean they were on or near the island of Molokai, Hawaii. But there was a problem with that guess as well: she was facing south, and based on her position, if they were on Molokai she should be able to see Lana’i from here, but the horizon to the south was bare.

Patchouli was not one who was perplexed easily, but this situation was, for lack of a better term, bizarre. Her calculation was flawless, but the facts that she saw didn’t line up with her observations. Most especially why they were in Hawaii, if that was even where they were. Regardless, her first instinct now was to report back to Remilia, and -

“So you realized it too?” said a voice.

Patchouli jerked around, and saw Sakuya standing next to her.

“Don’t scare me like that!” Patchouli said.

Sakuya bowed. “My apologies. I should have come back into real time a moment ago so you’d know I was coming.”

Patchouli looked around again, then asked the maid, “that’s alright. I was caught up in thought trying to figure out where we are.”

Sakuya looked out at the ocean. “Somewhere on the coast, I would presume.”

“Not just on the coast, but also at a tropical latitude further to the east than Japan,” Patchouli added. “According to my watch, it’s only been five hours since the wormhole knocked all of us out, even though it was early evening at the time. The sun is also rising later due to being further south.” She turned to Sakuya again, asking, “what do you mean I realized it ‘too?’”

“I’ve been up for an hour,” Sakuya said, “and I did a scouting around to make sure the mistress is alright.”

“Is she?” Patchouli asked.

“Yes, I found her in her bed. I haven’t woken her up just yet. I wanted to let her rest while I assessed the situation.” She cleared her throat. “There’s shattered glass and debris all across the mansion, but thankfully no walls or supporting structures have sustained any damage.”

Patchouli looked around. “And Meiling?”

Sakuya shook her head. “I haven’t seen her. I don’t know where she went.”

Both girls’ guts filled with dread. Was it possible she was taken to another realm by Necrozma? Both of them had good reason to be worried: not just Patchy’s crush, but Sakuya as well considered Meiling a close friend and a mother figure of sorts, given that Remilia left most of Sakuya’s rearing to the gate guard.

But, as it was, there was no sign of her. First and foremost, they had to make sure they safeguarded Remilia and the mansion. They also realized it was imperative to get in touch with someone outside the mansion, just to make sure other people were alright.

“I’ll go see if I can find the sages,” Sakuya said. “You should probably head back to your library.”

“Should I assign one of my devils to look over the mistress?”

“That would be good,” Sakuya told her. In the blink of an eye, she was gone.

Patchouli did as suggested and ventured back down to the library, passing down the stairs to the basement. Again, she looked at the door guarding where Flandre was, just to make sure it hadn’t been compromised, but that’s when she noticed something she hadn’t before: the archangel murals were now all gone.

Patchouli tensed up a bit. Fortunately the murals were merely symbolic and didn’t do anything to keep Flandre at bay, but for them to just up and disappear like that was very odd. She knew something paranormal was involved that removed them, possibly spirits possessing them and going around the mansion disguised as them. But that also meant that in the house of a vampire, there could be archangels running loose.

Acting on instinct, she summoned a dark tome containing demonic energies used to drive away holy forces, essentially the inverse of how one might go about sealing demons and negative energy with holy texts, and ran upstairs to where Remilia’s room was… well, more like “flew” since she couldn’t quite run on her feet for long distances without completely losing her breath. Arriving at the bedroom door, she tried the knob but found it locked. With no time to go look for the key, she picked the lock with a quick spell before forcing herself inside.

Inside Remilia’s room, she looked around, and saw the mistress sound asleep in her bed. Thankfully, Patchouli did not see any immediate threats or intruders. She felt it sufficient to make sure the blinds were shut and the door locked before returning to her library, when she heard a noise in the closet.

“Hm?” she wondered. She went over to the closet, whose door rustled as something alive was beating against it. Just before opening it, she prepared a Metal spell, which could kill most troublemaking creatures without collateral damage which would endanger Remilia as a Fire or Sun spell would. Carefully, she slid the door open, card drawn and…

“IMP!”

“BAH!” Patchy fell backward flailing her arms, dropping the tome as she did. When she managed to get back up, she saw a small, pink gremlin-like imp sticking its tongue out. It eyed the book, before taking it and running down the hallway while holding it over its head.

“Get back here!” she shouted, knowing that  _ that _ book being read by a non-magician would lead to disaster since, among other things, it had instructions for summoning Ahriman, turning water into blood, unleashing the tortured souls of the damned, and also contained the source code for Half Life 2: Episode 3. She flew down the hallway shooting metal danmaku at the imp, but it was very fast, very small and took pleasure in feeding off of her frustration as it taunted her and wiggled its butt in between dodges. At one point she thought she finally caught it by dropping a wash basin atop it, only to check under it, see nothing, then turn around and find the imp who farted in her face before taking off once again.

The chase led to the mansion’s eastern wing, where Patchy managed to corral it against a dead-end. “Any last words?” she asked as she conjured metal spikes from the carpet which began to rush toward the imp.

Then the imp kicked open the window and jumped out.

“Geeeeaaahhhh…,” Patchy sighed as she flew out the window in pursuit.

Outside, she could see something rushing through the thick flower beds. She flew over them, hoping to use a Wood spell to twist them into vines to trap the imp, but the imp was kicking up so much pollen that it got up her nose and in her mouth, triggering her breathing problems.

“GAH HAH HAK GHAK!” she wheezed, falling out of the air and doubling over. The air rushed out of her lungs, her eyes watered and the inside of her throat felt like it was being ravaged by hot needles. For moments like these, her only on-hand treatment was a painful injection of a medicine she herself made that cleansed the allergens and gave her air but left her out of battling shape for several minutes. It was either that or succumbing to an asthma attack, though, so she took the vial out, shot it into her arm, and let it take effect as her symptoms eased.

Coughing but still conscious, she looked up, and saw the imp holding up the book triumphantly and blowing a raspberry at her, before throwing it open on the ground and looking at a random page. It didn’t look like it could speak human languages, meaning it was unable to conjure the forbidden spells held within and just wanted to read it, possibly to see what it was she did not want it to see. But after a few moments, the imp froze, then jumped up while screaming in terror before running over to a wall, clambering over it and disappearing.

Once she could move her limbs, Patchouli crawled over to the book, amused that the imp couldn’t handle the darkness of the spells, illustrations and incantations of the book. She was about to close it, when her eyes caught the page the imp had been reading, and soon she found herself reading it.

Patchy blushed as red as a cherry before slamming the book shut. “Why did I summon  _ this  _ book???” she gasped in horror. Instead of the demonic tome, she had inadvertently summoned her bound collection of cringy girls' love stories she wrote not long after she came to the mansion, which she had locked away right next to the Baphomet head to keep everything and everyone who still had hope of going to Heaven from reading it. By no means were these stories meant for mortal eyes, and they included such illustrious titles as “Lily Succubuses of the Night,” and “Carnal Confessions of a Dragon Girl.” If anyone else saw this thing,  _ especially _ Marisa, she would see no end to the humiliation. She had to seal it back away, but was unsure how she could do so without the library devils seeing her with-

**_WHOOSH_ **

Her thoughts were cut short when a gust of wind blew the book out of her hands, sliding across the ground a few feet before coming to a stop on cobblestone. Then, out of the blue, a large spear struck the book, causing it to burst into flames and lights to erupt from it before being rendered into a small lump of illegible coal mere moments later. She could swear she heard demonic voices hissing from the cursed pile as it burned.

Patchouli looked up at the being responsible for banishing the book, and was met with a figure who resembled a somewhat cartoonish version of the archangel Michael, holding a spear and hovering in the air while flapping wings with metal feathers. From behind him, three smaller cupid-like figures, one a different color from the other two and with eyelashes, presented themselves.

Patchouli realized that these figures must have been born from the murals in the basement. The Michael-looking one stared at her with a stoic expression. Reaching out, she asked it, “are… are you here to…”

She was cut off when the cry of a massive bird came from her left. Looking to her left where the outer wall was, she saw a large, black, shining crow land on one of the pillars supporting the walls.

Patchouli, upon seeing this bird, had a flashback: it was one of the strange creatures Ultra Reimu had summoned the previous night to aid in her fight against the Border Patrol. Patchouli remembered that it had shrugged off most of her attacks, before she nailed it with Agni Shine, which also worked against a couple others of its kind. This one had no obvious injuries from the fight, though, and was paying her no mind. Just how many of those things were there?

Patchouli decided to fly up atop the wall again to get a better look outside of its walls; the sun was up more now and so more of the valley could be seen. What she saw certainly  _ looked _ normal, aside from being on the ocean, but she could see a number of strange creatures and animals wandering the place in addition to the usual fairies. What’s more, she squinted her eyes, and could make out a large, white building on the western shore close to where the mansion was, which was completely unlike any construction in Gensokyo. There was also a village on the same bay as the mansion, presumably the Human Village, moved there from its normal location further back from the lake.

Patchouli’s brain was slowly computing the implications of what all she was seeing. The feeling was indescribable: like she was frozen in a rictus of terror, awe, curiosity and observation. She stood there, still as a statue, for what seemed like an eternity, her only movement being her gown blowing gently in the tropical breeze. The spell she had around her eventually dropped, the saltwater spray entering her breathing once again, but this time elicited no reaction from her as she acclimated to it, too stunned by the sight before her to care. As a well-studied and powerful magician, she took pride in being able to know how the world and its physical and spiritual underpinnings worked. But now, she was certain she was dealing with an incident far beyond anything Gensokyo had before seen, and a being who regarded the Laws of Physics with about as much care as a cannon cares about a sheet of rice paper.

Patchouli stood there for a good while longer taking in the sights, before she noticed Sakuya flying up to her, having learned from earlier. The maid gracefully landed next to the librarian, taking in the same view as she did.

“I have returned,” Sakuya said.

“I can see that,” Patchy said, with a touch of deadpan.

Sakuya turned her head. “You’re not in your library. Is something the matter?”

Patchouli glanced over at the garden, where the archangel-like beings were still floating around, then to the other side of the wall, where the metal bird had moved to. Another imp, larger than the one she dealt with and with long black hair, was wandering about as well.

“Seems as though we have houseguests,” Patchouli commented. “Should we expel them?”

Sakuya shook her head. “Maybe later, but we have more pressing matters at hand.”

Patchouli was surprised. “But we clearly have archangels on the grounds of the mansion,” she insisted, pointing at them.”

“Not real ones, I have already determined,” Sakuya dismissed. “They are of no threat to ojousama. But we have been asked to come to Yukari’s place at once, and she requests that you bring that book with you.”

Patchouli was curious. “For what purpose? Why now?”

Sakuya took a deep breath, then said, “we have found Reimu. She’s alive and very well.”

Patchouli jumped back in shock. “S-she’s here?!?”

“There’s more,” Sakuya added. “When that wormhole sucked up Gensokyo last night? It did not merely move it to another location on Earth’s surface, it moved it to another reality entirely, into a world similar to our own, but very different as well. And as luck would have it, this is where Reimu was as well.”

Patchouli’s mind went blank. They weren’t on Earth anymore, but instead some Earth-like place in another universe where these strange creatures were native. And Necrozma had the power to tear it from out of the Hakurei Border, move it through space, and dump it here. It was more than Patchouli thought was possible, even given the possibilities offered by magic. This was divine power, power that didn’t care about any rules whatsoever, unlike magic which was bound to very strict and specific rules.

Patchouli realized then the full scope of what it was they were up against, what it was capable of, and now they needed to confront it and reverse its deeds. She wasn’t entirely sure it could be done, given the defeat of the Great Dragon, a head of the Kuzuryu flush with power under Izanagi’s guidance and the strongest dragon in existence, at Necrozma’s hands. But with that book she perhaps held the key to Necrozma’s defeat, and she was eager to share it with Reimu and everyone else.

So, in one masterfully swift motion, she summoned another circle which spawned the Chronicle of Sunne and Moone - she checked to make sure she had the right book this time around - and asked Sakuya “show me the way.”

Sakuya bowed. “Yes. It will be best if we make haste. We can learn more about this world while we are there, too. Reimu has people in her custody who are natives of this place and can tell us more. Marisa, Alice and Sunshine are there too.”

Silence, then Patchouli tilted her head. “They came here too?”

“I’m sorry, but we must get going. Please prepare yourself for a long flight.” Sakuya pulled out her pocket watch, causing the world around the two women to be rendered in greyscale and time to be brought to a screeching halt. Sakuya then took off, Patchouli following close behind.

In the air, Patchouli could now see that what seemed like the entirety of Gensokyo was now an island in the middle of a vast ocean, with other islands visible off in the distance. There were also a few things in the air, caught in Sakuya’s time stop; she didn’t have names for them, but along the way the two passed a Skarmory, a Braviary, a Trumbeak and a few other bird Pokemon. After rounding the other side of Youkai Mountain and approaching the north shore, they caught sight of their destination: a villa perched atop a tall rock bluff. This was Yukari’s house, which Patchouli had never seen before and never thought she would have the privilege of visiting. But this was no tea-and-biscuits affair. This was business, and quite urgent business at that, given Gensokyo’s future was at stake.

The two touched down in front of the door, and Sakuya deactivated the time-stop, allowing Patchouli the honor of stepping in first. She heard a voice which she recognized as Reimu’s as she walked up the steps.

“That’s what I said when I came here. In fact, in some of their ancient legends, Pokemon were described and feared almost the same way, before humans learned to live with and control them. There are many legends in this world, and the people here fully embrace them even with their modern technology and society… unfortunately, it seems one of these legends found its way to us.”

Patchouli opened the door and faced the large group around the table inside. “We already know the details,” she proclaimed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will be the last thing I post before the first chapter of Cognitive Psience in Eastern Utopia; given the amount of stuff in my life now with having taken a second job on weekends, I'll need all the time I can get to write that first chapter and vault it onto this site before August, as promised. Like I said, these Alola! side stories will mostly serve as creative fillers for if and when I hit writer's block while drafting it, since it will be another mega-story.
> 
> For the curious, possible side-stories that I've got ideas for include:
> 
> -One following Sakuya, placing her and Remilia in the events of Detective Pikachu; this will also elaborate on that incident that happens just after Reimu leaves the mansion  
> -One following Eiki and Komachi, who become International Police investigators and face down Team Rainbow Rocket  
> -One following Kokoro and her travels in Galar  
> -One following Satano and Mai around my original Novograd region  
> -The Excerpts from the Gensokyo Chronicle which I also have running  
> -As well as perhaps a one-shot collection for other characters whose stories don't warrant more than one or two chapter's worth of content
> 
> Finally, fair warning that this fic, if the previous chapter didn't clue you off, will delve into relationships and romance far more heavily than the main story, although it also still won't be the story's sole focus. I've left it tagged as Gen/FF for now, but depending on where things go that might change.
> 
> /infodump


End file.
